Method of manufacturing traveling bags



- June 23, 1931. Hf. F. WELTZ l 1,810,993

METHOD o' MANUFACTURING TRAVELING BAGS Filed Nov..11. 1929 2 sheets-sheet 1 Flai- E June 23, 1931.

H. F. WELTZ METHOD OF MANUFACTURING TRAVELING BAGS 2./s'heets-sheet 2 Filed Nov. l1 1929 f 3mm www,

ZO A94 ammi! 0 45 to the j aw frame against strains tending either -nnNItY F. Wn'nrz, oF sr. LoUIs; MISSOURI, AssIoNon To MILWAUKEE sTAMriNe con! 1o frames whereby to facilitate the attachment` Patented .lune 23, 1931" y UNITED STATES Lenses PA'isNTA ortica j IiiNY,oF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION or WISCONSIN ME'IIIOD @MANUFACTURING TBAVELING BAGS l Application filed November i1, 1929. Serial No. 40e/iai.

. My invention relates to improvementsin methods of manufacturing traveling bags, this application being a continuation in part of a former application for a patent on improvements in hand luggage Serial No. 157 738 filed by me December 29, 1926.

The object of my improved method is to make possible an additional operation tobe performed by the manufacturer of vbag of the bag to theV frame at greatly reduced cost and more handily, lquickly, and with: better job results than by any of themethods heretofore practiced, and' also to produce more durable and more attractivebags than those heretofore produced bythe more eX- pensive methods.

More particularly stated, it is my object to provide means whereby a metal connecting" and reinforcing piece may be applied to the jaws of a bag frame land' secured thereto at nominal cost andywith the connector piece inV such a position with reference to;y the frame, that the bag maybe applied and sewed'thereto by an ordinary bag sewing machine, for the operation of which the connector and jaw serve as a guide and relieve 'Y the operator of the sewingmachinegfrom a considerable portion of the labor anda major portion of the skill and experience heretofore required for a successful bag sewing operation.

' 'Another object is to provide means whereby bag frames maybe constructed'withoutany reference to, or provision for, the connec-v tion of bag bodies thereto, the connection kofsuch bodies being accomplished by special atcompleted.

A further object is `to provide a methodA for connecting bags withthe frame aws which will result not only in a secure connection of` to lateral separation from the jaws, or movement transverse to a direction of lateral sepa! ration which, if permitted, would tend to break or out stitches and expose the margins of the bag to pressure contactsorimpacts tend-'1 ing to permanently displace them.Y

A further object of my invention is to elim-V inate the necessity `of covering the j aws ofl traveling bags y (even those of the cheap grades of Gladstone bags) thereby making it possible to manufacture Gladstone bags "at a low cost heretofore vthought impossible to at.

tain with commercial success.

. In the drawings:

improved method.

V- ligure 2 is a fragmentary sectional view By my improved process Irst, form the' jaws of :the bag frame and,v subsequently secure thereto, preferably to the vouter sui'- faces of the inturned or supporting flange nector strip in a planepreferably perpendicularior nearly perpendicular to the surface of the jaw fiange to which -it isf-attached. .This connectorv strip may be secured tothe jaw flange by any suitable means such vas welding, although it is lnot material to the invention hereinA claimed a n g n .nA l A n lFigure l is an isometric view of a'Glad-, stone bagconstructed in accordance with my- Vof each jaw, a relatively thin metallic coii-V v soy whether the strip be welded, riveted or other- Y tachments applied after the frames hwe been wise secured. lt lshould be supported with substantial rigidity along the line where its laterally projecting kportion meets the surface of the'jaw iiange. Preferably this line is inset from the outer surface-ofthe jawflange avdistance substantially equal to the ordinarily formed of leather. i/i; lmetal strip is employed for the reason that it will ynot thickness of the bag cover, such covers being stretch oryield in its own plane, and for the i further reasony that it can be welded or other- -wiseattached to the jaw permanently and it forms afshelf which will not yield materially lotv .i

` connector.

1 thereby. entirely concealed from view/,gah

'are composed of so-calledV soft :steel: Ordi-v nary commercial sheet steel of .015 gauge' will fbe found satisfactory. This steel is classed as softl7 or medium soft?7 and the needle of'an ordinary bag sewing machine will readily pass tlirougfhit, particularly if the Vneedle first passes through the Vleather covering of the bag.`

After the connectorpieces have been ap-l plied to thejaws, the jaws maybe delivered to the bag maker who thereupon applies the .bag thereto with the cover portion marginally abutting the uws and resting upon Ythe A bag` sewing -niachine is then adjusted in posit-ion as illustrated in Fig. il,

with the vanvil of the machine bearing against and adapted to travel along the outer surface of the jaw, thereby ensuring operatio'iiof the machine along aA straight line expeditiously and with uniforni-rresults, said line. being offset from the `jaw whereby the stitching operation is wholly independent of and unaffected vby any structural feature of the jaw', and the needleis not required to pass through any portion of the jaw. `The aws of bagsV made by. vmy improved processinay therefore beconstructed without anyl refer. ence to the operations by which thewbags are to be connected.- p Y p Y` If the bag is to beV provided with `a lining, this lining will preferably be applied, along its margin, to the under side of the connector strip sothat when the sewing operation is completed the connector strip l,will be interposed between tlie lining and the coveignnd though it will effectively hold the margins of boththe lining and the coverin a substantially fixed relation to the aw flange'A and almost wholly Vrelieve the stitchingY from strains tending Y to break individual stitches.

In Fig. 2 the closure flanges 10 and'll of a set of bag frame jaws are respectively provided with inwardly projecting supporting flanges 12 and 13. These maybe regarded l typical of the lordinary jaws or frame niembers of the so-called Gladstone bags, 'although they are also used for bags of other types. But inthe practice of the rinvention herein disclosed the form of jaw einployedis, in general, not material, and it is also immaterial whether it has a nonmetalli'c covering.

fusiones The characteristic features of my process reside in the fact that it involves the use of a rigid or semi-rigid non-stretching attachinent which may be permanently secured to the bag frame jaws aft-e the latter have been completed-which. mayv be secured in any manner suitable for the'connection of metal to metal-which' tends to facilitate instead of obstructing the operation of sewing the bagA in position, and 'iifhichfhasnotendencyto weaken the jaws, but'o'n'the *contrary tends to strengthen them.

The connector strips 18 and 19 'are formed.

ofthin sheet nieta-l separately stampedv or cut to the required length" and width and shaped to fit theV jaws to v.which they 'are applied. Thereafterthey arefplacedin position against the outersurfaces of the supporting flanges i 12 and-13md the outerv edge margins .of the closureflanges as indicatedat the left hand side in Fig. 2, although -theya-re preferablyinset to someV extent Afrom the outer surfaces of the closure flanges. These strips vmay then be secured to the respe'ctivejaws as heretofore explained. Probably lthe .least rexpensive forni of connection. can'V beY obtained by weld-V ing them in position, with the connector 'strips substantially perpendicular tothe support-" ing` flanges 12. and 13, althoughthe exact planes in which they lie-"may be varied in correspondence with `the type of bag to bemanufactured and the position ofthe leatherj covering 20 in the'top'a'nd end portions of the After attaching the connector strips'to the jaw frames the bag cover 2O andits lining 21,

if any, willhave'its margins applied to the connector strips preparatory to the sewing operation, the lining being preferably applied to thel under sideof the connector strip'as shown in the drawings.V If thejaw vframes are to be'covered with any nonmetallic material such'lastlie leather covers 15 and 16, in. Fig. 2, these will of course be. previously applied, and their .margins .will preferably be extended upon theuppei',and-lower surfaces of the connector strips 18 and19.V

' 'Whether these connector-strips are covered or -not,-they` serveV as shelves to V support the bagY during the sewing operation, and the closure'flange of each Amay alsoserve'as aguide ,for the sewing inacliineindicated in Fig. 3, -theanvil Av-of which ...has relative travel along` the vouter surface ofthe supporting lla'iige'at the junction of the connector strip therewith,'i. e., in the 'angle Yformed by the-uni der side ofthe connector strip with the supporting flange. lDuringvthese sewing operations, the needleslpassthrough the material composing the Vbags and through the; 'thin metal'of the connector strips. -It will be apparent in Fig. Sthat during'the sewing operation'the bag framefmay be supported by the connectory strip Iupon the anvil. YA ofthe Y, sewing machine. Thisrelievesthe operator' izo It is not material to the invention hereinl claimed whether the bag frame jaws are pivchine with the anvil in the angle formed bythe strip with the frame surface to which it is connected, and stitching the bag to the strip along a line determined by such position of the work upon said anvil. s

' HENRY F. WELTZ. p

otally connected with each other prior to the Y sewing operation, or whether the pivotal connection is subsequently. made. Wherethe character of the bag is such that the sewing operation may be readily performed upon pivotally connected jaws, they may be first connected and subsequently sewed, but in other cases the jaws may be left unconnected until after the sewing operation.

In Fig. t I have illustrated connector strips 18a and 19a of a modified Aform in which these strips have upturned flanges 22 and 23 respectively. SuchV iianges on the connector strips facilitate welding or riveting operations which, if performed at points sufficiently close Ato the laterally extending portionsv Y of thestripslSa and 19a, will support such strips with substantial rigidity along their inner margins, and with great rigidity at the ends ofthe bag in the elbow portions of the Y strips where additional strength and rigidity are desirable.

In Fig. 4l also, the Ajaw frames are illustrated as uncovered, although it maybe assumed thatthey will be enameled or otherwise provided with nished surfaces.

I claim: i

l. The method of forming traveling bags consisting-in rst completing a set of jaw frames, and then securing to their outer surfaces along lines inset from their outer margins, a set of laterally projecting metal connector strips of sufficient thinness and softness to permit stitching operations by an ordinary bag sewing machine, then applying the marginal portions of a bag to said connector strips with its edges abutting the jaw frames, and machine stitching the same. to the connector strips while supporting and guiding the jaw and connector strip upon a portion of the sewing machine in the angle at the line of their connection for straight line stitching at a uniform distance from the frame. v Y

2. The method of manufacturing traveling bagsvconsistingin first connecting a metallic strip to a aw frame, then applying a bag along one margin in covering relation to one surface of the strip, supporting the bag frame upon the anvil of a bag sewing ma- 

